Take Back the Crown

Garrett sighed in relief when Svetlana managed to resolve the conflict. Of course, he instantly had to hold back a laugh as Dorian's cheery voice resounded in his head, exclaiming that 'Stupid kids just got fucking schooled.'


'You should not insult your teammates.' The mage responded.


'Unless they read minds, they can't hear me anyway.'


'I hear you.'


'And I'm sure you love every second of it.'


'No. Shut your mouth.'


'I'm not currently using it.'


'Shut your mind then.'


'Okay. Have fun.' The familiar drawled and before the mage could regret his words, blocked off the link.


Garrett flinched, almost like in pain, as suffocating silence filled his mind, almost like half his thoughts had suddenly been ripped away, senses dulled. He breathed in and out deeply, focusing on the remaining sense of the bond, before putting on his best smile and turning around to show both middle fingers to Dorian.


'Now who's the rude hypocrite?' The familiar piped up and Garrett sighed in relief as sound rushed back into his thoughts.


'By comparison, still you. Just get back to the group before you get eaten by a stray crawler.'


'I'll make sure to teleport it right on you.'
 
Lucasta's tear filled eyes soon turned to rage as the two continued to argue as her brother started to fade away. her fists clenched, her already pale fists turned even whiter. She was about to yell at them, but before she could Svetlana had already taken care of her brother, and had her follow the old woman. The fair haired princess stared down at her brother in the witch's arms and frowned. He may have been alright now, but he still looked horrible. 


Lilith exhaled angrily as she hopped off from her cat and approached Nick and Valeiah. "I've had enough of you two. How could you just stand there and bicker while a child is dying? Instead of fighting who gets the heal the lad, you should have worked together and used both of your knowledge the help him. We are a group now, we are all sworn to help the princess and the prince. We need to stop this foolishness and get a grip on the main idea." She gave both of them a long glare, before turning away, and stomping her feet against the sand. 
 
Bo watched the silent exchange between Aggie and Pippa, feeling that mere observation of the two was giving him a greater understanding of how their relationship worked. It seemed like they probably had some sort of telepathic connection, especially since all of their nonverbal communication really didn't make much sense without words. Even though he knew that Pippa was apparently some larger, moodier, more powerful and intelligent being, Bo picked up the now small corgi dog, and put him in his lap. If Pippa was indeed bothering Aggie (or perhaps it was both ways, since he was now giving her a stink eye as opposed to the smug look he gave earlier), he hoped maybe a good pet would calm him down. Or at the very least, distract him. He began to massage the little dog behind the ears and around its fluffy neck, his head perking up at Aggie's question.


"Good! Yeah. Valeiah healed me up, so I'm good now." Although, he had been eavesdropping in on what he could hear of the argument that was flaming up further down their makeshift 'camp.' It seemed that little arguments like those kept bubbling up, but not unexpectedly, as their travels had been pretty stressful. He however, stayed out of it (and was thankful enough that he was never dragged in to intervene), if only because he felt he didn't carry the same presence and authority that Svetlana and the princess did to be able to diffuse the situation well enough that it died down. 


"No more stabbing pain of broken bones piecing my innards and no more blood quickly leaking out gaping wounds in my body, haha." He paused for only a moment before quickly adding, as he saw Oceana approaching. "And psh. I have enjoyed your company thus far. So don't worry about it so much. I think you'll be just fine."


He smiled up at her, feeling strangely elated that she voluntarily approached him, since he had been under the impression that she was particularly sour towards humans. That had been the main reason why he'd kept his distance. But now that she'd initiated the conversation, he almost didn't know what to do with himself. Almost.


"Oh! No, nothing too bad. At least, not anymore. A crawler did try to eat me but thanks to Aggie and Valeiah I'm fine. No longer dying. Just fine." He tilted his head to the side, looking at her neck. "So uh, it seems you got your voice back. Are you feeling better?"


@Tater @OlKaJa77
 
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Pippa greatly accepted the rubs behind his ears and closed his eyes, leaning back his body against Bo's chest and huffing like a child. /Boy you wish this was you don't you. Want some pets, Aggie?/ Pippa chuckled in her head, his eyes half open as he enjoyed the attention.


Agitha's cheeks went dark and she looked up to Oceana, her eyes adverting slightly. Placing her hands in her lap she exhaled slowly and pulled her cloak more around her shoulders. 


@soundofmind @OlKaJa77
 
Nameen attempted to listen in on the argument taking place next to her, but she gave up when the searing in her ankle began to flare with a greater intensity.  She flinched, momentarily seeing spots.  With a side glance she could see all of the potential healers absorbed in a bout of bickering, so she turned down to her injury irritably.  


Gritting her teeth and breathing heavily, Nameen slowly edged off her boot to reveal an ugly mixture of puss and blood leaking through her hastily wrapped bandages.


She suddenly felt nauseous, and wasn't sure if it was the sight or the venom.


I should at least try to stop the bleeding... Buy some time... 
 
Nick was silent until everyone had quite finished yelling at him before he spoke, his voice quiet and deadly calm.  "I apologize.  I was trying to help.  Little miss "I know everything" over here got up on her high horse and I didn't want to start things off by knocking her out so I could actually do something without people yelling at me not to do anything.  Perhaps I was mistaken in that regard.  Next time I shall be prepared to do what I must.  And, by the way, the first explosion I set off would have drawn the Crawlers away from your camp toward my then-current location."  He pulled his hood down lower over his face and went back to his saddlebags and began to look for something.  "Next time someone tries to help, perhaps you should give some thought to the concept of letting them."  He pulled out a loaf wrapped in paper and tore off a small chunk, holding it so Svetlana could see.  "This loaf contains sugars, carbs, and proteins of various types, as well as essences of a variety of restorative herbs.  Peanut and chocolate for flavor.  I'm sorry you had to expend so much unecessary effort due to my hesitation to take decisive action here.  This should help replenish what energy you lost."  He set the chunk down and began to pack everything back up.  "I suggest you lot get a move on.  That hive is pretty much completely incapacitated, but the commotion will likely be irritating to other neighboring hives.  Some might try to invade and take the nest for themselves.  You all would do well to put some distance between this place and yourselves.  Keep your eyes on the walls, and keep yourselves well lit.  If you see pheromone slime, find an alternate route or be very quiet."  He stepped into a stirrup and swung a leg over his riding horse.  "Now...  Unless you can think of a good reason for me to stay with you lot, I'll be heading back to my tower.  I don't know what you people are up to, and I'm beginning to suspect I'd rather not be mixed up in it.  Not least because I'll be stuck teaching humility to at least some of you."  He turned to the brown-haired girl.  "If you truly were a healer, you would take any advantage you could get.  You are young and brash, and you are still trying to prove yourself.  A true master has no need to prove themselves with words. They simply do what they do best and let others come to the inevitable conclusion.  Next time someone offers to help, instead of telling them to screw off, take advantage of their assistance.  You might want to take care of the Hypnotist, by the way.  I see she has not used my neutralizer or my cleanser..."  He took up his reins and gave the others a moment to decide on what they wanted him to do.
 
Oceana's lips twitched as she looked upon the goofy Bo, and was even slightly less leery of the dog creature in his lap.


Aggie's cheeks suddenly flushed and the wood elf remembered the water skin in her hand.


The dark elf looked slightly haggard and sympathy panged in the huntress' chest.


Gently taking her darker counterpart's hand she placed the water skin in it and stroked her wrist with a willowy thumb.


"Thank you, Aggie." She said with a warm smile. 


Hearing harsh breathing behind her, she turned to see Nameen unveiling a gnarly wound on her leg.


A sharp inhale at the smell of the wound wafting over even from ten paces away.


Overhearing Nick's insult to Valeiah and dismissal of Nameen's injury, the elf felt her anger rising again.


She leapt to her feet and drew her bow in the same motion, arrow notched.


"You speak of those who do what they must? Of humility?" 


Her voice was still scratchy but stronger now, almost back to its usual low, deadly grumble.


She drew the arrow back


"Then this is what I must do. And I must say; you must get off your bloody high horse and help her. No arguments. No back talk."


The bow string creaked in warning and the elf narrowed her eyes.


"I simply am doing what I must to save my friend's leg. And you will do what you must to avoid an arrow to the throat."


@Tater @GlytchMeister
 
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"Oh, put that away, will you?  I'm not about to do anything while you've got me at arrowpoint, and shooting me won't exactly convince me to help.  Besides, last time I tried to help someone here, a bunch of people ended up yelling at me to not do exactly that."  Nick extended his discharge blade and sliced open a saddlebag, dumping the rest of his neutralizer vials and cleanser pots onto the sandy ground.  "There.  Do as you please with my help.  Beyond that, I feel it would be better if I remove myself.  You're behaving like bandits who can't make up their minds.  'Help us, but don't help us, help us, but don't help us, and either way we'll kill you.'"  Nick shook his head disdainfully.  "I'll spare you the effort of going through even more childish theatrics, elf, and split the difference.  You want me to help, but don't want me to help.  Fine.  Here's my deal:  help yourself."  He took out the complicated metal vial and tossed it at her feet.  "Turn the knob three clicks counterclockwise and press it fully down to give the Hypnotist a full dose, to slow the progress of the venom and buy yourselves time.  Spread a dollop of cleanser the size of an eyeball on her wound and light it on fire to clean it.  Crush a vial of neutralizer over her to take care of the crawler offal residue.  There.  Now you have everything I can do to help her and the knowledge to do it right.  I'm not doing anything else until someone proves I won't get stabbed for actually trying to help.  Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm leaving before your apparent habit for banditry gets the better of you and you try to rob me of everything else."  As he turned his horse and began to retreat, he tossed a final remark over his shoulder at the hotheaded elf.  "By the way, that arrow probably wouldn't pierce this cloth.  I'd be bruised, and not much more.  Mithril mail is nothing compared to alchemically enhanced spider silk.  Good day."
 
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            "Put that bow away before I snap it in half!" Svetlana scolded the bold elf, striding toward Nick. Trusting Oceana would heed her words, she directed her attention to the man astride his high horse, "And you! Get off your horse this instant!" She said, sounding remarkably like a scolding grandmother, "You speak of humility, and yet you do not practice it yourself. I expected more maturity and restraint from someone who has lived for hundreds of years, especially over those much younger and more passionate than he." She said sternly, though as kindly as possible, returning the food he had given her as she did not need it, being a high mage with deep reserves of mana. She placed it in his hand and then gripped his fist, "You are high in the way of age, but your current mind is working like that of a child. Some of these younglings have experienced far more strife than you in the time you've spent locked away from the troubles of this world." She spoke strongly, "We did not needlessly push ourselves into a hot dry desert, where the sun beats down relentlessly, and the dangers are extraordinarily high. There is a greater goal that binds us together, despite our diversity and disagreements... one that is greater than you, or any one of us."


            "You insult me by regarding me and my companions as mere bandits. Even the actual bandit we have in our midst has more moral and honesty than that!" She gestured to Hjalmar who was sitting quietly on a rock not too far away, "Perhaps you have been blind to much as you spent your time in solitude, away from the world and all it's misfortune. The free people of this earth are shackled in cold hard chains, ruled by an iron fist. We few," she gestured to the people around her, "are on a quest to change that... to restore peace and prosperity to this broken land." She released his hand, "You are all acting like children," she looked about at her comrades firmly, ensuring all who were listening could hopefully see sense and swallow their pride long enough to get the job done, "fussing about when there is so much at stake. There are lives hanging in the balance, and every moment we spend bickering amongst ourselves, someone is suffering at the hand of Kvacht..." She sighed, tired and drained. Not because she had spent too much mana in the battle before, but because of the overwhelming emotional tension. She glanced up to Nick, "I can not convince you to stay, nor will I accept these gifts given so bitterly." She uttered gently, "Return to your desolate tower, to your books and your studies where you are most comfortable, where you can pridefully boast without retaliation. I thank you for the assistance you offered us in our battle, and for trying to help the Prince in his time of need... [COLOR= rgb(39, 42, 52)]But please, for the love of Lyr and Dahr...[/COLOR][COLOR= rgb(39, 42, 52)] go or travel with us in [/COLOR]peace[COLOR= rgb(39, 42, 52)]." She added before turning away and approaching Nameen.[/COLOR]


[COLOR= rgb(39, 42, 52)]            She knelt beside her and removed the scarred girls bandages, repeating the same process she did for the prince on her, hoping to alleviate her pain, and feeling remorseful for not helping her sooner.[/COLOR]

 
Nameen exhaled sharply upon attempting to unwrap the sticky bindings around her ankle. 


It'll be quick.  I'll just... do a better job.. until-  


Barely thinking straight through the pain she side glanced at the group metres away, just as another round of bickering broke out in between them.  A rather upset Svetlana and Lucasta broke free of the crowd, followed by Yaroslav carrying asleeping prince Lucas in his arms.  Those who remained seemed to be getting right up in the Nick stranger's face, Valeiah and Foxrun in particular.  The rest Nameen didn't pay very much attention to, and she could barely focus on anything through her dizziness and pangs traveling up her leg.


However, no amount of agony would've prevented her from catching Nick's last sentence as he mounted his horse.  Upon first hearing, the hypnotist, Nameen found herself confused at first, wondering what the obnoxious stranger was referring to. 


Then something in her mind clicked, she peered up numbly, and saw his eyes resting on her.


Nameen went rigid.  All of the pain in her entire body was vanquished in an instant, replaced by an icy feeling.


He knows. 


But that's impossible.


He's looking right at you!


They know now.


No, no, no, not again.


Sudden images flashed through her mind.  Her father and mother.  Other strangers.  The glint of a dagger.


Nameen shook her head, snapping back to a reality that surprised her.  Oceana had suddenly materialized in front of the stranger on his mount, arrow notched in her bow, aimed directly at his neck.  What did I miss? What is she doing?


She ground her teeth in frustration upon seeing him let something fall to the sand before the elf's feet, then turned her stare back to the ground.  A mixture of anxiety and rage flashed across her face, one that remained as Svetlana approached.  She barely reacted as the old woman changed the bindings around her ankle. The only sound coming from her being short, ragged breaths.


@Lo Alyssa 
 
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Oceana flinched at being called a child but held her ground, though the arrow returned to its quiver. She felt like adding something so the alchemist couldn't refuse, loathe as she was to have him along.


"And where we're going could possibly hold magics beyond imagination. To learn about and to study. You're a scholarly creature and there is much to learn on a quest to make history and save the world, donnae you think?"


The elf kicked at some sand, looking melancholic but her voice was low though not unkind.


"We need all the help we can get and you need more things to study. I'd say it's a fair trade, fuadan neo-bhàsmhor"


Turning her icy gaze back to the odd human, Oceana smirked in a rebelliously smug way.


"Of course you could return to your boring tower and would never get to see the depths of lost dwarven cities or the gloomy plains of the daemon land. Or you could help us and get to see all that and more."


Oceana shrugged nonchalantly.


"Your choice."


@GlytchMeister
 
Hypnotist. While the word seemed to echo through his mind, he knew it must've been screaming through Nameen's. He thought back to their conversation about her magic, and how he figured it had to do with her eye. The title Nick had given her in an instant provided the puzzle piece he had been missing in understanding what Nameen was really asking about, but he wasn't able to take any pleasure in discovering so because if the manner in which it happened. With one word, the secret that Nameen had been trying to keep about her host magic had been violently revealed, and not only that, the magic that she had - that apparently gave her eye magical powers and the ability to be a hypnotist - was dormant. She wasn't able to use it, and with it being a host in her body, he knew that she probably didn't ask for that magic either. His felt his heart break as he saw the look on Nameen's face, and he could only imagine the terror she must've been feeling. No wonder she wanted to keep it a secret. If he was any good at guessing, it probably had to do with the scar across her face.


He felt his heart racing and sinking simultaneously. All he wanted to do was something to try and help her. Not with her ankle - Svetlana was already on that. But he could only anticipate the questions that might come after. Maybe. Possibly. 


"Um. Just a second. I - uh." He cleared his throat, picking Pippa back up and setting him on the ground as he got up. "Sorry." He apologized quickly to Aggie before he went over to Nameen and Svetlana. 


"Will she be ok?" Bo asked, but didn't wait for an answer. Instead, he mumbled his own. "I mean, of course she will. You're healing her. You're great at that." He sat down next to them, biting his lip briefly before talking to Nameen, quietly.


"You'll be ok Nameen." He tried to think of what he would've wanted to hear when he was her age. Or rather, when his magic was revealed when he had tried to keep it hidden. "We want you here. You're our friend. Don't worry about what we think. You've proven yourself to be brave, and trustworthy."


@Tater @Lo Alyssa @Rydellius
 
"Kvacht?"  Nick reined in his horse.  "Isn't that the daemon bloke who helped us out a while back?"  He furrowed his brow.  "What fresh hell has descended upon the world now?  I thought we had a nice little monarchy going.  Not the best form of government I've heard of, but... What, is the continent ruled by Kvacht now?  And he's a tyrant?"  Nick slid off his horse and approached Svetlana, now pointedly avoiding eye contact with the hypnotist... He knew what his goggles had shown him, and he did not want to find out how much control she had over her gaze.  "I gave you the chunk of biofuel loaf as an apology for my inaction, by the way.  Not a bitter gift but one of many, perhaps clumsy, attempts at good relations.  I admit, I'm socially a blundering fool.  I'm sheltered and privileged.  And the only reason I compared you lot to bandits was because I had an arrow in my face.  I'm sure you can understand why I might be a little irritable about that."  He turned to the hotheaded elf and the brown-haired healer.  "Hate begets hate.  Violence begets violence.  How about we try to start over, I obviously didn't handle things as well as I could have.  I don't really know where exactly I screwed up, but I honestly was only trying to help, and then I was just trying to avoid having my life threatened for rendering aid where it wasn't wanted.  Oh, and I know I'm no immortal, I just make new bodies."  He returned his focus to Svetlana.  "I'm willing to travel with you in peace so long as your people stop pointing sharp things at me and actually allow me to help.  If the world is messed up... Again... Yeah, I want to help.  I don't care if there's a single academic opportunity along the way if it means making the world a better place."  He glanced around at the others.  "So, uh, anyone mind filling me in on what the hell I've missed?  I've been out of the loop for... A while..."
 
Feeling like a scolded child, as he really should, the half fae had grown quiet again. The silent anger just welled up in his throat, his chest heavy with resentment towards the way this man spoke to each of them or about them. Svetlana had many good points. But he was not sure how well he felt about this fellow tagging along, even with his shotty attempt at an apology. He was confused by the way he spoke of Nameen, however, but by the looks of her, it was crashing down on her entire world. He felt a twist of agony for the girl. They hadn't spoken much, but she was one of the more mild tempered members of their group. And she had never caused any of them discomfort, irritation, or harm of any kind. So for a mere stranger to cause her such obvious turmoil? Was yet another thing that caused further dislike of the guy. He quickly turned from the irritating man, even seeing him was beginning to make him feel worse. He marched up and hovered behind Bo, speaking to them all "whatever it may be, Bo is right. You're always one of us. Regardless of what you've gone through, you have more than proved yourself to us. You have risked your life to protect each of us, and we would all trust you to do it again and again." He then grinned "although I hope you wouldn't have to that often." Even though he felt that would indeed be exactly what would happen for each of them.


@soundofmind@Rydellius(just tagged the ones he spoke to specifically)
 
            Finishing her work on Nameen's leg, incinerating the foreign substance attacking her body, the woman glanced at Nick and laughed, "I think all of us have been held at knife point by our own comrades at one point or another, so this is actually completely normal... we have to be cautious, especially now... But, I... will fill you in later." She said slowly, thinking and calculating. When she finally withdrew her magic completely, and the injury on her leg became nothing more than a scar, she placed a hand on the girls shoulder. She wished she could offer reassurance or say something to make her feel better. But there were other tasks at hand.


            "I understand your intentions were not out of illwill towards my companions, but the way you said certain things brushed people the wrong way." She left the three, gesturing for Nick to follow her, "If you would truly like to apologize, I would ask you give me those goggles." She requested, though she knew he would probably not want to oblige, "You crossed some lines, peering and probing into places your nose nor your eyes belong. You may not have meant to, but you uncovered a secret that was not supposed to be uncovered. You violated her privacy, and you say hypnotist in a very condescending way. For this, I would like to confiscate your goggles unless you truly need them for something, but you are no longer permitted to use them on people without valid reason." She said, hoping he would understand her reasoning and agree to the terms, "Besides, rely on something too much, and you become weak. You do not need these to detect or feel magic, regardless of whether you are able to use magic or not. It might be good for you to step out of your comfort zone." She gave him a reassuring smile, "And do not worry, I will return these to you at the end of our journey, or if along the way you truly need them. But for now, this is all I ask." She said, "Sometimes... there are certain things better left unseen."

 
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Looking up as the gentle thumb brushed against her soft skin of her wrist, she met the gaze of the other elf, it took a moment for her to flutter a smile,"Your'e very welcome." she dipped her head in a reply. 


Watching as Oceana stood up and drew her bow, she stood up as well. 


Pippa gave a grumble as the petting stopped and he was placed on the ground. Watching the others converse with the strange tech savy man, she stepped forward, holding her hands out slightly as if to say something but held her tongue. Looking almost sadly to Nick. She knew he wanted to help, but nobody should undermine the powers of someone else and insult them in times of importance; it could affect their focus and magic. 


Pippa trotted in between Bo's feet and looked up at the man, letting his beady gaze stare up at his stubbled chin impatiently. 


@soundofmind @GlytchMeister @all
 
Oceana looked at Nick, tilting her head in the animalistic, inquiring way of hers.


Then her expression softened to tired reproach.


"Sorry about that." She grunted, hoping he caught that she meant the arrow in his face.


Shrugging under her cloak, the petite elf bent to pick up his things into a spare leather sack and handed them over.


"Here." She whispered, not looking up at him.


After that was taken care of she made to check on the princess and her young brother.


Once she was sure they were alright and unbothered, which took a glance and a moment of listening, she ended up near Yaroslav.


Sighing deeply she looked up at the big man who so reminded her of her father.


She fought back the urge to throw her arms around his waist, and instead cuffed him on the arm.


"Glad to see you're alright." She murmured, giving him a slight smile. Their eyes met.


"We'd be lost without you and your matriarch. I really mean that."


@Lo Alyssa @GlytchMeister
 
Nick nodded respectfully toward the elf.  "I realize you act in the best interests of your companions... But so do I."  He took back his items and tied them to his saddle, replacing the one he had sliced open.  "Thank you."


Unsure of what else he should do at this point, Nick decided not to press his luck and simply gave the elf a small smile before following Svetlana.


( @OlKaJa77 )


Her request was... Troubling.


"I will most definitely need them if we are in combat with anything more advanced than a wild animal.  I use these to analyze magic on the fly.  It's saved my hide on more than one account... Either in spotting weaknesses, seeing aces up enemy's sleeves, or determining ways to defend against something.  You promise me I won't wake up with a knife in my gut tomorrow, and I'll gladly hand them over.  However, your cavalier attitude towards people making such serious threats is more than enough to make me not want to trust you with my life."  Nick curled his lip.  "And they have served me well, even now.  My mind is the only reason I'm still alive.  I don't want people messing with it.  It is my last bastion, my safest haven, my sharpest weapon and sturdiest shield.  I warn you now, if it is violated, I will not tolerate it at all, and my reaction will be... Extremely unpleasant for everyone.  I hold no personal grudge against the girl, only a great fear of her power and the way I react to exposure to that sort of magic.  I think it interferes with something involved with my connection to my current body.  I'm not really sure yet.  I try not to put myself in situations where I can learn more about it, as I generally come to after having gnawed large chunks of flesh from my arms, set lots of things on fire, and otherwise wreaked primal havoc upon the area.  Not exactly my idea of a pleasant weekend, y'know?"


The alchemist took a deep breath and lowered his hood and goggles, revealing the rest of his face and head to the others for the first time.  He held the goggles in his hand, weighing his options for a long moment.  "I also use them for seeing into the distance or looking at very small things... Or both.  You can imagine how this can be highly advantageous when traveling.  I generally can stay out of trouble because I can usually see it coming from miles away."  He scratched his head briefly before finally returning his gaze to Svetlana.  "Be that all as it may, you seem to be on a mission of grave import.  I want to help.  If giving you my goggles will mean things go easier between myself and the others, so be it.  I doubt I'll be of much use until they trust me enough to ply my trades in the first place."  With a steadying breath, Nick handed over the goggles, knowing full well he was severely handicapping himself as he did so.  "I hope, for everyone's sake, that you are right about this."


@Lo Alyssa
 
Valeiah placed a hand over her mouth and made a fart noise. "Blah blah blah, I'm smart, oooh look at my goggles, I look like a bug!" She was holding fingers up to her eyes now.


Of course, she said everything just under her breath so Svetlana wouldn't hear it. Valeiah very much knew how much she acted like a child and frankly, she didn't care much. She just didn't want to be scolded.
 
Foxrun watched as the two left, eyeing them curioisly as the man handled the witch his goggles, that is, until Valeiah broke his train of thought. He then glanced over just in time to see her hilarious expression, and he busted out laughing MUCH louder than he expected if himself. He quickly covered his mouth to muffle the continuous fit of sound. "What are you even doing?" He hadn't heard what she said, only spotted the face


@Danika
 
            "Oh, I do apologize for making light of the death-threat." Svetlana chuckled, "But you seem capable of yourself, and dear Oceana tends to make threats she never follows through with. Your life was hardly in danger." She added with a smile, "Besides, just a few weeks ago that Foxrun fellow joined our group, but only after being threatened with three different weapons. And yet, here he is, already a trustworthy shield brother... As for me, I have fought in many wars, even achieving the rank of a general and having been put in charge of many lives... However, fatalities are usually somewhat unavoidable on a journey such as ours, and I am prepared for the worst. This is certainly not a quest for the faint of heart."


            When Nick handed her the goggles, she hesitated, pondering on his explanation. Turning his hand away, as a gesture that he could keep them, she sighed, "If you find them that important, I wish not to debilitate you. I only ask that you respect your newfound companions, enough that you will no longer pry into their personal lives. The hypnotist over there? Her name is Nameen, and I am sure you have noticed her scar. Now she has not told me how she got it, nor have I asked, but I can only assume because of the placement, it was given to her by someone who feared her power as you seem to. While I trust you not to harm others out of fear, that fear alone is enough to cause trouble. You will have to learn to trust these people with your life, even those who hold a power you fear. I am afraid that you revealed a secret she did not wish for others to hear, and she feels violated as such. Apologize to her properly later, but as for now, just promise me you will not use them on anyone here. If you do see something, do not confront, and especially do not blather about it out loud." She added and then exhaled, now that she made herself clear, " You seem like a decent fellow Nick, I am sorry we all got off on the wrong foot. But I am sure everything will sort itself out with time." She added optimistically before turning toward the fire.



 
​


            Yaroslav had been staring into the fire, quietly lost in thought. His ears twitched, and his head turned as he felt a hand gently touch his grimy arm (wrestling with a crawler will do that). He saw it was his fellow huntress, Oceana, and offered her a smile, "Not so sure about myself, but we definitely would not survive without my grandmother." He chuckled, "It is good to see you are alive and well." He said, "That was a close call- well, for all of us really... Thanks to a certain someone who didn't want to take the blame." He spoke under his breath just loud enough for her to hear. Speaking of the devil, Ashlar grimly walked towards the fire Yaro had started, and took a seat across from them, though he did not make eye contact. He sighed, removing his sweat-drenched head wrap. Hjalmar was limping close behind, seeking the warmth of the fire with his hand clutching his wounded shoulder. Though Nick had cleansed it, and Svetlana had partially healed it, it was still sore and raw. Yaroslav grimaced at the idea, but he begrudgingly called, "Hey, kid!" He gestured him over, and the boy gave him a look of confusion as he obliged.


            Yaroslav reached over for a bag that had been tossed, pulling out some gauze, "Let me see it." He said gruffly, and Hjalmar managed to slip off the torso of his armor. Getting the idea, he sat in front of Yaroslav and despite the cold of the desert night, he reluctantly pulled his stained shirt off as well. Noticing the many scars on his dark skin, Yaroslav raised his eyebrows, "Not your first battle, I see." He stated, but turned his attention to the newest addition on the thief's left shoulder. He laughed, "Well, folks tend to shoot at you when you're stealing something from them- OW!" He winced as Yaroslav inspected it in a rough manner, "Watch it!"


             "Daft idiot, you reopened it somehow." Yaroslav muttered, wrapping the first layer around his shoulder.


            "Probably when I was- oh, I don't know, shooting my crossbow and being trampled over by crawlers, saving everyone's hide?" Yaroslav just rolled his eyes in response.

 
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Nameen was appreciative of Svetlana healing her of her wound, but at that moment all she wanted to do was get away from the old woman, from the distasteful Nick, and from everyone else lingering in the area.  The venom may have been vanquished, but she still felt sick, and having so much attention on her only made her feel even more anxious.  


Feeling recovered enough to stand, Nameen rose stiffly to her feet after shrugging on her still bloodied boot without a care.  She then sent a deadly glare in Nick's direction before stalking off in the direction of the caravans.  There would be no sitting around the fire for her that night, she had no desire to.  


Walking in more of a daze, Nameen was more conscious of the thoughts in her head than the desert night around her, so much so that she nearly stumbled right into a lone cactus.  The welcoming spines greeted her out of nowhere, and she veered back just in time to avoid being pricked.


Instead of moving past it, Nameen offered a one eyed glare in the direction of the plant for several moments.  Then with an surge of anger, she drew her sword, swung and sliced the plant clean in half.  Juices from its insides dripped from the glinting blade as she continued on towards the wagons.  


Upon reaching them Nameen leaned her back against the wood sides, slowly sliding down to sit.  She let her weapon fall beside her, and pulled her cloak tightly around her, thinking.  


The way that he said hypnotist... It wasn't as if Nameen hadn't heard titles such as that before, but the last time she did, she'd lost an eye.  And on top of it all, the one thing she'd been wanting to keep secret for the time had been revealed from no less than a stranger that her companions were letting stay.  


She sighed sharply, staring into the horizon of the vast wasteland before her, attempting desperately to keep unwanted memories out of her head. 
 
Sitting down in the sand next to Hjalmar and Yaroslav, Oceana regarded the odd pair of friends she had made.


They both seemed not to like each other that much but somehow here they sat, Yaro tsk-ing like a disapproving sibling.


The thought made the usually sour elf smile.


She rustled in one of her numerous pouches and pulled out two dark chunks of something.


She held one out to Hjalmar, and popped the other in her mouth.


"Ishh chockwet." She mumbled around the treat. She waved her hand in the air as she swallowed.


"heh... sorry lad. I mean, It's chocolate."


She was ready to hand Yaroslav one as well when he was done clucking over the thief like a mother hen. Smirking the elf maiden sat back on her hands, and watched the new fire crackle. 


A quiet moment passed.


Looking around at their group, she sighed.


All looked either dead tired or mortally frightened; the lot of them looked like death including Nameen who was chopping the unsuspecting foliage to pieces off in the distance.


She frowned at the violent and needless loss of life.


"Humans." She sighed, sounding more exasperated than anything else.


@Lo Alyssa
 
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Foxrun merely snickered and offered an eye roll, throwing his arms up in surrender "you don't have to worry about me." He then gestured at the fire, "shall we join the others now?" He suggested, brow slightly raised as he waited for response.


@Danika
 
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